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An open letter to former State Rep John Scott

Dear John:

While the old saying that “the lawyer who represents himself has a fool for a client” is mainly true, I feel in this instance I can take that risk, as I have a fool for an adversary. I write at this time to put you on notice that I intend to take legal action (the nature of which I decline to specify) against you for plagiarizing this blog. All the well written bits in the letter attacking Chris Conley, that appeared in today’s Day, which the preponderance of the evidence indicates that you ghostwrote, were written by me, in the course of a well deserved attack against you.

I demand redress.

To prove my claim, “let Facts be submitted to a candid world“:

The letter contains the following lines:

On the issues she mainly confined herself to a fierce and unaccommodating dedication to the interests of workers compensation lawyers everywhere, but especially those in Groton.

and:

Now I am pleased to report that Conley is actively engaged in advancing the interests of her constituent. You can check out the bills she’s sponsored or co-sponsored on her website but I will save you some trouble and tell you about one in particular, HB 6666, “An Act Expanding Remedies and Potential Liability For Unreasonably Contested or Delayed Workers Compensation Claims.”

Before I go on, I fully admit that I stole that “candid world” line above from Thomas Jefferson, but you see I put it in quotes, and that makes it okay, and anyway, Thomas Jefferson is dead and he doesn’t care.

Back to the main point, now that Tom has been put on his ease. Take a look at my blog here, where you see:

On the issues, he mainly confined himself to a fierce and unaccommodating dedication to the interests of insurance agents everywhere, but especially those in Groton

And if you go here, you see:

Now, I’m pleased to report that Scott is actively engaged in advancing the interests of his constituent. You can check out the bills he’s sponsoring or cosponsoring here. But let me save you some trouble and time. Here’s a sampling, selected by yours truly…

I don’t need F. Lee Bailey to prove this case, or even an expert witness. Look, I’m flattered and all, that you think so highly of my prose, but that doesn’t excuse the fact that you are making use of the sweat of my literary brow without my permission. And don’t try to say you didn’t write the letter. I know you did because a) hardly anyone reads this blog, but you do, and, b) I’ve known since I wrote them that those posts hit home. And of course, I’m not happy about the fact that you stole language I wrote to make a perfectly valid point against you so you could make a perfectly Fox Newsian invalid point against Chris Conley. I was particularly fond of my clever use of the singular “constituent”, and was mightily distressed when I saw that you stole it in pursuit of your sad little vendetta against Chris. Oh, by the way John, Chris’s proposal won’t be driving up her billable hours because worker’s comp lawyers don’t get paid by the hour. They get paid only if they deliver for their clients, unlike insurance agents like you who feel the need to force people to get insurance they don’t need through you.

So, case proven, and it only remains to make my demand for rightful compensation for your egregious plagiarism. Don’t worry, I don’t want your money. And I hereby release the person who signed his name to your screed of any moral liability, though legal liability is another thing altogether. No, I shall withhold my legal wrath provided you:

  • Humbly apologize for your premeditated theft
  • Admit that you are a sad and bitterly sore loser who has dedicated the time since your well-deserved defeat to unfairly sliming the person who administered that electoral whopping.
  • Agree to remain under the rock to which you were consigned in 2016, and stop penning letters to the Editor (for this is not the first) for other people to sign.

Should you fail to comply with these demands, I shall have no choice, as we lawyers say, but to take appropriate action.

I would be glad to discuss this matter with you or your attorney.

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